Not even two weeks after the Seattle Storm included Zia Cooke in a trade with the Washington Mystics, the third-year guard is back.

Heading into the Tuesday night matchup between the Seattle Storm and the Chicago Sky, the WNBA anticipated the potential return of the star center, Angel Reese.

In a ceremony before Seattle hosted the Phoenix Mercury on Sunday, legendary former Storm guard Sue Bird, who led the franchise to four WNBA championships, became the first WNBA player honored with a statue outside a WNBA arena.

The longtime Storm point guard already had her jersey retired and a street in the city named after her, and became the first player in WNBA history to have a statue erected outside of a team’s home arena.

The Seattle Storm unveiled plans to build a statue for 13-time WNBA All-Star Sue Bird, who spent her entire 21-year career in Seattle. Dallas Wings star Paige Bueckers gave her reaction to the news to DallasHoopsJournal, calling Bird an inspiration for her.

Sue Bird confesses her love to city of Seattle ahead of 2025 statue unveiling before Storm's Sunday afternoon game against Mercury

On Sunday, the Seattle Storm unveiled a bronze statue of legend Sue Bird, who became the first former player in WNBA history to have one.

On Monday, the Seattle Storm signed Zia Cooke to a rest-of-season contract. Throughout her first season with the Seattle Storm, Zia Cooke has posted 3.3 points, 0.5 rebounds and 0.5 assists per game. Before her time with the Storm, Cooke played two seasons with the Los Angeles Sparks.

The WNBA sends a message to the Storm after the unveiling of Sue Bird's statue just before Seatte's game on Sunday.